26 
The President’s Address. 
Science, though he readily comprehended, and almost instantly 
appropriated, everything which was new and valuable. 
Iiis fine library and microscopical museum bear testimony 
to his judgment and taste. He was an able practitioner, a 
good anatomist, and possessed an ample knowledge of general 
physics. 
Richard Beck was born in October, 1827, at the then 
residence of his parents, Tokenhouse Yard, London ; his 
father being a partner in the well-known firm of Lister and 
Beck, wine-merchants. As is often the case with men who 
distinguish themselves in particular pursuits, Richard Beck 
did not in his boyhood evince much aptitude for the ordinary 
routine of scholastic teaching. He is described as more fond 
of play than of books, and his manifestations of talent and 
ability were in the direction of mechanical pursuits. This 
inclination was judiciously fostered in a school at York 
where he finished his education. . At this time (1841) his 
parents perceiving that the manufacture of the microscope 
was likely to rise in commercial importance, made arrange- 
ments that Richard Beck should learn the business by serving 
for three years under Mr. Smith, an excellent workman 
engaged in carrying out the views of Mr. Joseph Lister and 
other distinguished members of this Society. Previous to 
this period much had been accomplished by Mr. Pritchard, 
Mr. Powell, and Mr. Ross ; the two latter having greatly 
distinguished themselves by giving practical effect to the 
optical principles made known by Mr. Lister in 1829 ; but 
both in methods of manufacture and in many important de- 
tails of construction there was still much to be desired and 
accomplished, and it was mainly through the skill and the 
exertions of Richard Beck that the well-known firm of Smith 
and Beck, formed in 1847, took such an important position 
in the microscopic world, and, by maintaing an honorable 
rivalry with the other great makers, effectively contributed 
to bring the English microscope to its present degree of 
optical and mechanical perfection. 
Important improvements in the mechanical stage and 
in methods of illumination owe their origin to Richard 
Beck, and when Mr. Wenham devised his admirable 
arrangements for binocular vision, they were promptly 
carried out under his skilful supervision. In devising 
microscopic apparatus adapted for special investigations, 
Richard Beck exhibited great ingenuity; and when the ideas 
of other inventors were communicated to him, he usually 
endeavoured, and frequently with success, to improve upon 
them before giving them practical effect. As a microscopic 
